The 10 "Don'ts" of Corporate Social Media

As social media continues to morph moment to moment – almost every corporation and enterprise KNOWS it should be doing something to position itself, and its products and services, over social media. Yet most simply do not know what that something is, or how to do it effectively.

And, believe it or not, not everything goes. In their quest to do something, some companies are making bad mistakes that turn off the very audiences they wish to court.

Who can lead the way? Recent college grads who have grown up in the medium, but have little corporate or marketing experience? Or, brand and marketing strategists who have grown up with totally different sets of rules? At my firm, I figured out that we need to mesh experienced thought leadership strategists with bright new thinkers.

So, for the summer, Swarthmore College(my alma mater), is sponsoring a fantastic student, Ian Anderson, to serve as our intern, and research the absolute best ways for organizations to communicate their brands through social media.

Ian and I have developed an entire methodology and will incorporate it into our practice. But in the meantime, we have put some of our findings into a new piece: The 10 Don’ts of Corporate Social Media, which we are posting here.

Since we have a lot to say, we will post one “Don’t” each day for the next 10 days, with a wrap-up on the 11th day.

Do these suggestions ring true to you? Do you have additional ideas or great examples of companies doing it right? What is your experience? Ian and I would love to know, so please post your comments below.

Here is Don’t # 1:

The 10 “Don’ts" of Corporate Marketing through Social Media

By Davia Temin and Ian Anderson

Don’t #1: Don’t Over-Market, Be Social

Forgetting that your brand is on a social network is one of the worst and most basic corporate social media blunders

Most mistakes are made by brands that forget that entering a social network means entering a social circle, much like one encounters in real life. In these circles, there are norms dictating how one speaks to others (posts), what is appropriate in terms of how much and how often one speaks, and what is socially acceptable to speak about.

The use of straight “marketing messages” rarely works. Over-advertising in a social space is never socially acceptable, and ignoring social norms, or grossly trying to capitalize on trending topics for marketing purposes, is how brands get involved in situations like
Microsoft’s Amy Winehouse Blunder, or Entenmanns' Casey Anthony Blunder.

Moreover, each website -- from
Facebook, to Twitter, to
LinkedIn, to YouTube and Foursquare – has its own set of social norms that you neglect at your brand’s peril. Some websites may not even be appropriate for your brand. One size does not fit all.